Times reporters blog about high school sports across the Southland

Baseball: Lucas Giolito signs with Washington Nationals

Former Harvard-Westlake pitcher Lucas Giolito signed with the Washington Nationals for $2,925,000 just before Friday's signing deadline.

"It's pretty funny," Giolito said. "There was 30 seconds to go."

Giolito was the No. 16 pick for the Nationals. He injured his right elbow last March, spraining a ligament not long after he was clocked throwing a 100 mph fastball during the opening days of the season at Harvard-Westlake.

A healthy Giolito would have led to him being taken in the top three picks of the draft. His teammate at Harvard-Westlake, Max Fried, was taken at No. 7 by the San Diego Padres and signed last month for $3 million.

"The Nationals and I are really happy," Giolito said. "My arm feels great. I'm looking forward to pitching. I'm ready to be a professional."

Giolito still doesn't have an exact day when he will return to the mound. He continues to rehab his arm.

Both Giolito and Fried had signed with UCLA.

"I'm happy for Lucas and his family," UCLA coach John Savage said. "But I couldn't be any happier with the guys we got."